From Henry Chigozie Duru Not infrequently do we hear people, while sympathising with others, lament, "a whole Christmas Day and there are some families who cannot afford to cook common rice." Though such comments are often an accurate reflection of the grinding poverty in the land, it is somehow also revealing of one of those illusions that combine to make life incurably painful for humans. Truth is that beyond the society's glorification and elevation of rice almost to the status of the substance of the merrymaking that happens at Christmas and indeed during other celebrations, not being able to cook rice on that day should in itself not dent one's celebration. I understand that when people make such comments, they usually mean to say that such families are so poor that they could not afford the common staple food every home customarily cook on a day like that. While this is basically true, it does not tell the whole story because, even without those who ...